Nov 24, 2008

Why Blue is Yellow

Blue was never supposed to stay. I was going to find a great home for the four-week-old kitten Ryan brought home. This is why I named her "Blue." It was a generic name based on her coloring.

But she ended up with us. And the little spit-fire grew like a weed before my eyes.

Molly and Maggie weren't too happy about their new little sister, but things settled in quickly and Blue made herself right at home.

So why is Blue yellow?

Blue's liver is currently clogged with fat deposits that her body tried to to utilize for energy. When a cat stops eating, for whatever reason (in Blue's case, it was because she has stones in her bladder; we found this out by doing an ultrasound), the body starts to utilize its own fat stores. Unfortunately, a cat’s liver cannot metabolize fat and the end result is liver failure.

Because her liver is clogged, it cannot filter out waste products. Collectively, this waste is known as bilirubin. Bilirubin is yellow in color and this is the reason Blue is so yellow.

There is no treatment for Fatty Liver Disease, only therapeutic support. The only "cure" is food. Sounds easy and simple, but it's not. Blue has absolutely no interest in eating and she cannot not eat while having this disease. We've tried everything under the sun (short of caviar!) and she has refused every single item we've presented.

This is why we've resorted to having to force-feed her several times a day. :-/

Please, please, if your cat stops eating for more than a day, see a vet!

We know we can conquer this. We've conquered broken pelvises before, so we can certainly beat this!

Blue was hit by a car in 2006 and suffered a fractured pelvisin addition to road rash all over her face

The way I see it, Blue has 7 lives left! She'll be back up to speed in no time!